You feel a knot in your stomach as you step to the pulpit. You are about to preach a sermon on an emotionally charged issue. This issue has been smoldering for weeks in your congregation. People are talking about it, asking questions, voicing strident opinions. You are determined to speak to it from the pulpit.

But now, staring at the faces of the people who trust you and love you, you are having second thoughts. You imagine the reactions your sermon is sure to evoke. Some people will be angry: "Pastor, wish you'd just stick to the Bible!" Some will be shocked, confused: "When my church goes off the deep end, where can I turn?" Some will be supportive: "That sermon took guts, pastor." Few will be indifferent.

Make no mistake, you are about to drop-kick a hornet's nest "Why am I doing this?" you think, fringing your hands. "I'm not going to change long-held views in a 20 minute sermon anyhow. Our Fall fund-drive kicks off in two weeks and here I go creating conflict and turmoil. What was I thinking of?"

Capital punishment. Abortion, Homosexuality. Gay marriage. Euthanasia. Legalized gambling. Not for long can a responsible preacher avoid controversy. Sooner or later every pulpiteer has to deal with an emotionally charged issue.

Some preachers are drawn to controversy like moths to a flame. Most ministers, though, are reluctant to deal with emotionally charged issues. Clergy fear that controversial sermons will endanger the congregation's institutional health. Attendance may decrease. Giving will go south. Members may leave the church and go elsewhere. Even if they don't change churches, parishioners may be hurt. A good relationship between pastor and people can take years to forge. Why risk fracturing it? Is it worth rocking the boat?

Furthermore, the authority of the pulpit often inhibits the balanced treatment of a controversial subject. Many people feel, quite rightly, that the pulpit is a place for authoritative proclamation. When parishioners' sense that the pastor is using that authority to push his or personal views, they react negatively.

Over against all these concerns lies the pastor's sense of call. And what about biblical integrity? If you feel God's word has something to say on an issue, then shouldn't you say it? If people are ignoring Scripture's clear teaching on a certain issue, why shouldn't they be challenged? The preacher's job is not just to comfort the troubled, but to trouble the comfortable. Moreover, a controversial sermon gets the issue out in the open. The toxicity of the topic is diminished; honest dialogue can now take place.

To preach on a controversial issue, or not to preach? Before you decide, ask yourself three questions,

1) Are there alternative strategies for addressing this subject?

Sometimes a sermon is not the best way of addressing an issue. Preaching, after all, is monologue. Those who hold opposing points of view do not get equal time to present their side of the story. Would an adult Sunday School class be a better forum for addressing the issue? How about a series of special midweek meetings? Pro and con articles in the church newsletter? Speaking to an issue doesn't necessarily mean preaching about it.